The History of HEAD Corporation

In 1967, the Commission on Religion in Appalachia (CORA) created the Self Help Task Force to research and address the factors causing the persistent and widespread poverty in central Appalachia. In 1974, the Task Force incorporated as the Human/Economic Appalachian Development (HEAD) Corporation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit community development corporation, “to promote, encourage, organize and mobilize for self help community development… and to make available realistic local business and job opportunities… to carry out all other activities related to the general betterment of human and economic conditions.”

Through the years, HEAD has evolved into a regional community development corporation whose members include individuals and organizations that support its comprehensive community development efforts in the central Appalachian region. The organization has developed program initiatives and affiliates to further accomplish the organization’s mission to improve living conditions for low-income people throughout the area. For example, HEAD created the Appalachian Federal Credit Union (AFCU) to address the need for fair access to credit at a reasonable rate of interest and the Federation of Appalachian Housing Enterprise, Inc. (FAHE) to support the lack of affordable housing in the region.